165 squat x 3 , now I did a full pistol squat, basically this thread is all about... squat. (Read 163 times)

scappodaqui

rather be sprinting

posted: 5/6/2013 at 12:43 PMmodified: 5/12/2013 at 3:17 PM

Yeah, I've never done that. It was actually 5 reps but I rested between the 3rd and 4th. Depth was judged by my trainer as good.

BTW I weigh under 130 and am female.

Ultimate goal is 200 lbs.

Annnd no one on a running forum may care as much as I do, BUT I do think that squatting has helped me take 2 full seconds off my 200m time, so ha.

PRs: 5k 19:25, mile 5:38, HM 1:30:56

Lifting PRs: back squat 176 lb

miele

Godzilla

posted: 5/6/2013 at 4:43 PM

I'm on the running forum and I care (ok, I don't post much at all but I do read). I'm very impressed. I'm trying to be diligent about following a proper leg routine in my weight lifting (it seems to be the first thing I drop when the miles go up) so this sort of thing is interesting. I'm not going to embarrass myself by telling you what I squatted today. Well done and keep posting your progress.

I'm on the running forum and I care (ok, I don't post much at all but I do read). I'm very impressed. I'm trying to be diligent about following a proper leg routine in my weight lifting (it seems to be the first thing I drop when the miles go up) so this sort of thing is interesting. I'm not going to embarrass myself by telling you what I squatted today. Well done and keep posting your progress.

Firstly, thank you.

I mean, it took me a LOT of time to get up to this number. I've been squatting regularly for several years, with a break last year following surgery. It took me 1 year to build to 150, then I had to go down to 110 this January when I got back into it (!) and since then I've slowly worked my way up. It's like running, it takes a lot of time and practice and supplementary exercises, and, frankly, you don't need to squat tremendous numbers to run distance, though body weight is a good goal.

That's awesome! I'm impressed, too. I'm about 115-120 lbs (female) and I have a vague goal of squatting my body weight, but I keep being lazy about squatting when I go to the gym. It's actually not exactly that I'm lazy about it, but that (a) I think my form is bad and I don't know how to fix it, and (b) it always makes my legs hurt so much that my running workouts suffer. Any advice? Same goes for deadlifts; I feel like I should be doing those as well.

That's awesome! I'm impressed, too. I'm about 115-120 lbs (female) and I have a vague goal of squatting my body weight, but I keep being lazy about squatting when I go to the gym. It's actually not exactly that I'm lazy about it, but that (a) I think my form is bad and I don't know how to fix it, and (b) it always makes my legs hurt so much that my running workouts suffer. Any advice? Same goes for deadlifts; I feel like I should be doing those as well.

First of all, that's a totally attainable goal if you do it in a smart, patient way. (Let's be real, based on your mileage and crazy PRs, of which I am super jealous, it's obvious you're not lazy). My advice is definitely to read up on it, watch videos of people squatting, or better yet, get some real-life coaching--even just a single session to pick up a few tips. Tons of people have muscle imbalances that can result in injury and generally a trained eye can spot those. Or you could take a video of yourself and post it here or in the x-training forum? [I really need to take some videos of myself lifting one of these days!]

a) re: form. You should start really light and do form first before you worry about weight! I did barbell squats with just the bar to learn to get below parallel and to keep my upper back tight.

Secondly, something I've seen in myself and other runners is that sometimes, for whatever reason (lack of engagement during runs?), our glutes stop firing well. I recommend an active warmup before squatting that involves band walks (you put one of those stretchy bands tightly around your shins, squat BACK until you really feel your glutes, and take large but controlled sideways steps). I would say 3 sets of 5 would be good for that. It definitely wakes up the muscles if done right.

The other thing that I recommend while you learn proper form for back squatting is to build your strength up with a safer move called the goblet squat:

I started out with goblet squats and squatted with just the bar on my back for about 4 months back when I was first learning the movement and it helped a lot. The other neat thing is that goblet squats and front squats are excellent for core stabilization, and arguably even better for runners than back squats (though personally I like to do back squats because I can handle heavier load and want to improve my short distance speed).

b) I don't really know what to tell you about the soreness getting in the way of running. It does. Something I do is run my speed workout and then lift, then take the next day off. I find that doing sprints and lifting on the same day can be a way to get in some quality work without DOMS kicking in. Plus you could do 1 day of pretty light weight and higher reps and then just 1 day a week of heavier and make it the day before your day off? That's what I generally do. Honestly, I don't need to lift more than 2 x per week to make gains. Three is ideal, but I often sub in hill sprints.

But hey, clearly I could learn from you on how to maintain mileage, so what do I know? (though I am training for shorter stuff right now and obviously I care a lot about lifting, as well as running).

Wow, that is a very helpful reply. Thanks for taking the time to write all of that out. Our PRs are actually really similar! You are quite a bit faster in the mile, though - to be honest, I would LOVE to improve my mile time this summer. My main focus is the 5k but I think that raw speed is my biggest weakness, and that if I could get my mile time in the 5:30 range, I could run under 19 easily. I have a running coach and he knows my goals. He is excellent and he prescribes all of my running workouts, but he doesn't say much about lifting (other than that it is good to do it).

I can get in the 'third world squat' position easily. I have pretty good mobility and when I squat with the bar I can go below parallel (almost ass to ground). The problem is with my back and shoulders. I always get really tight in my upper back/neck when I squat; sometimes I even feel a weird twinge/sharp pain there. I will try to get a video of myself this week so I can post it online. That's a good idea.

I'll definitely start doing goblet squats. Those look a lot easier to handle while I'm figuring out good barbell form. Once I'm recovered from my most recent race I'm going to implement a 2x/week strength program that's a little more structured than what I've been doing.

scappodaqui

rather be sprinting

posted: 5/7/2013 at 10:25 AM

Aw, yay, I'm so glad you thought it was helpful! I am home sick and I loooove to talk about lifting, so I figured I'd ramble.

Upper back and trap tightness is my issue too! Honestly, some of that comes from just having... a weak upper back and maybe weak lats, which most of us have because we sit down at screens. Like I am now. Hm. Anyway, bent-over single-arm rows are good for that. Any rowing variation or lat pulldown is great (actually! it's great to superset rows/pulldowns/pullups with squats because a squat is a 'push' motion and a row is a 'pull'--if you were supersetting with deadlift you'd do a press like chest press or whatever). Another good cue to loosen your shoulders but tighten your back (it's called scapular retraction)--I've heard 'pinch a pencil between your shoulder blades.' When I run I have this awful habit of hunching my shoulders and it's lousy for arm swing and makes me expend a lot more effort. A stronger back helps a lot.

Good luck recovering from your most recent race and thanks for giving me something to chat about on my sick day.

Wow, that is a very helpful reply. Thanks for taking the time to write all of that out. Our PRs are actually really similar! You are quite a bit faster in the mile, though - to be honest, I would LOVE to improve my mile time this summer. My main focus is the 5k but I think that raw speed is my biggest weakness, and that if I could get my mile time in the 5:30 range, I could run under 19 easily. I have a running coach and he knows my goals. He is excellent and he prescribes all of my running workouts, but he doesn't say much about lifting (other than that it is good to do it).

I can get in the 'third world squat' position easily. I have pretty good mobility and when I squat with the bar I can go below parallel (almost ass to ground). The problem is with my back and shoulders. I always get really tight in my upper back/neck when I squat; sometimes I even feel a weird twinge/sharp pain there. I will try to get a video of myself this week so I can post it online. That's a good idea.

I'll definitely start doing goblet squats. Those look a lot easier to handle while I'm figuring out good barbell form. Once I'm recovered from my most recent race I'm going to implement a 2x/week strength program that's a little more structured than what I've been doing.

PRs: 5k 19:25, mile 5:38, HM 1:30:56

Lifting PRs: back squat 176 lb

miele

Godzilla

posted: 5/7/2013 at 12:00 PM

Great info! I'm going to start the third world squat.......I always tend to roll backwards. I like the idea of being able to squat my body weight. New goal for me! Yay! I'll try out the goblet squat, too, next time I'm due for a leg routine. I tend to go to the gym 4x a week: 1) legs, abs; 2) back, bis; 3) chest, tris; 4) shoulders, abs.

I also do the legs the same day as a speed workout and do a short, slow recovery run the next day. Or take that day off completely depending how I feel.

My gym is a no-frills weight room with a bunch of body-builders who are really helpful if I need some feedback on my form. I don't like to bother them too much but when I need some help they're always willing to take the time and give advice. Maybe you have someone at your gym you could ask, youngoffender. I'll be watching for your squat video.

scap - Thanks! Hey, I'm always down to talk about lifting/running...I'm a very novice lifter but it's something I'm interested in from the perspective of wanting to optimize my running training. I have had some bad running injuries in the past and I still have some chronic lower leg issues, so I am also interested in correcting any imbalances I may have.

I've actually been doing bent-over rows a lot, with dumbbells (like 35lbs). I do that shoulder hunch thing when I run too; my traps tend to hurt after long or hard runs. I think I carry a lot of tension there in my everyday life too, just sitting around or whatever.

miele - There are lots of experienced lifters at my gym but I am kinda intimidated by them...I know I shouldn't be! It would be really helpful to get some form tips. Maybe I should just suck it up and ask someone next time I'm in there. I've gotten kinda stuck in my usual strength routine, just doing the things I'm comfortable with even when there are some other lifts that I'd really like to learn.

scappodaqui

rather be sprinting

posted: 5/7/2013 at 5:40 PMmodified: 5/7/2013 at 5:40 PM

youngoffender, 35 lbs is a lot of weight for bent-over row! I'm seriously impressed--that's the weight I use (not that I'm so awesome, I just think I'm a bit larger than you--5-10 lb).

youngoffender, 35 lbs is a lot of weight for bent-over row! I'm seriously impressed--that's the weight I use (not that I'm so awesome, I just think I'm a bit larger than you--5-10 lb).

nolamama

CQTM

posted: 5/8/2013 at 11:34 AM

165 is great scappo!

Have any of you looked into stronglifts 5x5? I like the "idea" of the program because it's not complicated and there are only 5 exercises. My problem is that Medhi only talks about "dudes" and doesn't really give any guidance towards women. I've been just working on the squat for now, trying to work on my form with an olympic bar. I know I need to build leg strength to combat my constant knee problems so I can eventually build up my base mileage and start running regularly again.

Have any of you looked into stronglifts 5x5? I like the "idea" of the program because it's not complicated and there are only 5 exercises. My problem is that Medhi only talks about "dudes" and doesn't really give any guidance towards women. I've been just working on the squat for now, trying to work on my form with an olympic bar. I know I need to build leg strength to combat my constant knee problems so I can eventually build up my base mileage and start running regularly again.

The 4-day split seems slightly awkward to me because of how hard it is to work into a running schedule. But if you're not running right now it might be a good time to do it. I've always been too much of a rugged individualist (read: stubborn jerk) to follow a program, until now when I got my Olympic lifting coach who has me stick to the plan.

What's wrong with your knee? I mean, did you get an assessment to figure out what's causing it or what? because there can be so many causes of these things and it can be so hard to figure out.

PRs: 5k 19:25, mile 5:38, HM 1:30:56

Lifting PRs: back squat 176 lb

scappodaqui

rather be sprinting

posted: 5/11/2013 at 2:19 PM

OMG I JUST DID TWO FULL PISTOL SQUATS ON EACH LEG.

So I'm posting on this thread again. Do I brag too much? Whatever, I'm really proud of myself. I've been trying for months and months and months to do a pistol squat and I just did 2 on each leg, going all the way down until my butt hit my heel and then coming back up.